Cultural diversity
Ancestry
About this topic
Ancestry describes a person's cultural association and ethnic background, and Census respondents can report more than one ancestry. It is a broader cultural measure than country of birth because it can reflect family heritage across generations.
This topic helps show the size and diversity of cultural groups in an area, including groups whose members were born in Australia. Because multiple ancestries can be reported, ancestry totals can exceed the total population, so it is best read with birthplace, language used at home, and religion.
Interpretation notes
- People can report up to two ancestries, so category totals represent responses rather than a single unduplicated person count.
- ABS advises that ancestry is best used with birthplace and language, because ancestry alone is a broad measure of ethnicity and cultural background.
- The 2021 form added separate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mark boxes, so those categories need caution in over-time comparison.
Key insight
In 2021, the largest ancestry groups among residents in Australind (part) were English, Australian and Scottish.
Section overview
Ancestry - Ranked by size
Australind (part) - Total persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises ancestry for Australind (part) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Harvey (S) and change since 2016.
Ancestry - Ranked by size snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Australind (part), with comparison markers for Harvey (S).
English
2021 count
7,379
% of total
23.1%
Change from 2016
+0.6pp
7,379
23.1%
+0.6pp
Australian
2021 count
6,546
% of total
20.5%
Change from 2016
+0.7pp
6,546
20.5%
+0.7pp
Scottish
2021 count
1,597
% of total
5.0%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
1,597
5.0%
0.0pp
Irish
2021 count
1,531
% of total
4.8%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
1,531
4.8%
-0.4pp
Italian
2021 count
970
% of total
3.0%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
970
3.0%
+0.2pp
German
2021 count
567
% of total
1.8%
Change from 2016
+0.2pp
567
1.8%
+0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
2021 count
507
% of total
1.6%
Change from 2016
+1.4pp
507
1.6%
+1.4pp
Maori
2021 count
389
% of total
1.2%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
389
1.2%
-0.2pp
Dutch
2021 count
357
% of total
1.1%
Change from 2016
0.0pp
357
1.1%
0.0pp
New Zealander
2021 count
213
% of total
0.7%
Change from 2016
-0.1pp
213
0.7%
-0.1pp
Chart view
Ancestry - Ranked by size change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
English
+848
+0.6pp
Australian
+791
+0.7pp
Scottish
+131
0.0pp
Irish
+26
-0.4pp
Italian
+152
+0.2pp
German
+98
+0.2pp
Australian Aboriginal
+451
+1.4pp
Maori
-15
-0.2pp
Dutch
+43
0.0pp
New Zealander
-33
-0.1pp
Data table
Ancestry for Australind (part). Ancestry - Ranked by size. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Harvey (S).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Harvey (S)% | Count | % | Harvey (S)% | Count | pp | |
| English | 7,379 | 23.1% | 22.7% | 6,531 | 22.5% | 22.0% | +848 | +0.6pp |
| Australian | 6,546 | 20.5% | 20.1% | 5,755 | 19.8% | 19.8% | +791 | +0.7pp |
| Scottish | 1,597 | 5.0% | 4.7% | 1,466 | 5.0% | 4.5% | +131 | 0.0pp |
| Irish | 1,531 | 4.8% | 4.5% | 1,505 | 5.2% | 4.7% | +26 | -0.4pp |
| Italian | 970 | 3.0% | 3.9% | 818 | 2.8% | 3.9% | +152 | +0.2pp |
| German | 567 | 1.8% | 1.6% | 469 | 1.6% | 1.5% | +98 | +0.2pp |
| Australian Aboriginal | 507 | 1.6% | 1.5% | 56 | 0.2% | 0.2% | +451 | +1.4pp |
| Maori | 389 | 1.2% | 0.8% | 404 | 1.4% | 0.9% | -15 | -0.2pp |
| Dutch | 357 | 1.1% | 1.1% | 314 | 1.1% | 1.1% | +43 | 0.0pp |
| New Zealander | 213 | 0.7% | 0.6% | 246 | 0.8% | 0.7% | -33 | -0.1pp |
| Total | 31,978 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 29,034 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +2,944 | 0.0pp |
Excludes ancestries with fewer than 10 responses (multi-response).